Passion Statement of the Day | What Ms. Audrey Hepburn Believes

Lessons from the Outdoors # 1

A Prayer To Stretch The Heart

Dear God,

I am deeply hurt and disappointed by the very people who I look up to for wisdom and understanding. 

Help me to stretch my heart and be the bigger person - that I may cover them with kindness, gentleness and love.

Amen.

Of Dreams and Fear

Photo taken from www.uvm.edu

The things we desire are the very things we fear.

I speak of the big, hairy and audacious goals and the delicious dreams that haunt us. I speak of the life-changing  decisions that have no guarantees. 

But I guarantee this, a life lived without pursuit of dreams (especially the scary ones) is no life at all.

On Listening

When someone pours out their thoughts, fears, dreams and desires to you - do listen.

Listen to what she says, but also to what she does not say.

Listen not just with your ears and your intellect, but with your heart.

Keep Your Thoughts Healthy

Mind what you feed your mind.

What you feed grows, what you don't diminishes.

Perturbed but at Peace

Read it here. :)

On Facing Fears

Just because it's scary doesn't mean you shouldn't do it.
On the contrary, that is precisely why you should do it.

Life and Waiting

1. I've come to know that most of Life, is waiting. And most of the time, whatever I'm waiting for, comes sooner or later.

2. Sometimes I get the feeling that this isn't it, that out there, my real Life is waiting.

You Always Have A Choice

You can choose to be a victim of your circumstances or you can choose to rise above it. Rising above does not mean getting out. It means being in control of your thoughts, words and actions so they do not feed the unpleasant situation.

It means being accountable for everything that you do. It means finding a solution, not dwelling on the problem. It means blooming amidst the wasteland. 

Going out of your comfort zone does not only mean exploring distant horizons. It means facing the demons and darkness of the present and fighting it with patience, integrity and kindness.

Stretch yourself. Do not allow yourself to curl into a ball of unfulfilled dreams and regrets. Choose to be happy.

Growing Gains

The grace and gift of growing older is that you start to realize what really matters in life and you have little tolerance for bullsh*t. You speak with conviction about your beliefs.You become more comfortable in your own skin, and there are only minute traces of the insecurities of your adolescence. You are a little bit more fearless - because you've hurdled the aches and pains of young adulthood and you survived. It doesn't mean life gets easier - for there are bigger crossroads along the way - but in a way, it becomes simpler, because you have a firm grasp of your anchors and what's important to you.

Much is to be gained by growing older. The dots of your past start to connect and make sense and life becomes richer.

On Brokenness

If I feel the need to show people that I am a-ok, that I am super, that I am just fabulous, then there's something broken inside.

When I am chronically afraid of rejection, of failure, of letting go (of inhibitions, possessions, habits), of the unknown, there's something broken inside.

When I find myself falling into patterns of thought, words and behavior that do harm to me and others, there's something broken inside.

 How do I fix what's broken? First I acknowledge and then ...

I forgive: Myself and those who have hurt me intentionally  or otherwise

I accept:  The truth and make no excuses. Who I am - warts and all.

I surrender: Control over circumstances and people.

For when I am whole, I accept my imperfections and understand that it's okay to feel sad and lonely and unattractive sometimes.

For wholeness means I do not need  affirmation from people and things to know and feel my worth. Being whole means knowing that failure and rejection do not make me less worthy.

For when I am whole, I seek what is good for all.

Joie de Vivre Is Discovered, Not Pursued

Life these past months has revealed to me certain truths and realities about dreams, desires and goals. Things I've experienced, read about and reflected upon have led me to revisit the paradigm behind the Joie de Vivre workbook. 

First paradigm shift : Joie de vivre is not to be pursued but to be discovered. It is not something that is out there for us to chase after or seek, it is already in us - and we are unconsciously experiencing this at certain moments. 

Second paradigm shift : Setting goals and achieving dreams and desires can sometimes hinder us from truly living in the present. We are in a constant state of  restlessness - always wishing we were in some other place. Not to say that one shouldn't set goals or pursue dreams. It's the attachment to them and the impatience to make them come into fruition that depletes our serenity. Life is fluid and evolving - so are our dreams.

So in the meantime, this workbook will stay in the parking lot - while I take a walk around the block and rendezvous with joie de vivre.

What I'm Grateful For

I am grateful that on most days I have the time to do things just for the sheer joy of doing them, that I get to create and produce something without worrying about deadlines or appraisals and that I realize that at the end of the day, I work to live and not the other way around.

What Can You Do?

The greater the love, the greater the risk
The greater the risk, the greater the reward

What else can you do but go for broke?

When Relationships are Rocked

A relationship (romantic and otherwise) evolves and changes over time. Life brings circumstances that shake it up, turn it inside-out, upside down, wrong side up -  and it is never the same. Depending on how you handle it, it can either cause a rift or a renewal. It is wise not to resist or struggle against it. Instead, try acceptance and surrender. Take a step back and several deep breaths, if you must. When you speak, speak gently and out of love.

When the chemistry changes, take the new form and examine it. Peel at the layers and beneath it, you will realize that your attachment to what once was (or what you thought it could be) is borne from fear of realizing the truth - about yourself, about the other person and who you are in relation to that person. It's best to take it as it is, and handle it kindly.

When relationships are rocked by some inner turmoil or an external deluge, just keep steady and weather the storm. Turn to your Anchor -that unshakeable, unchanging and unshifting force of Unconditional Love - and know that you are loved and worthy as you are - whether the relationship sinks or survives.

Words of Wanderlust

Image by Vandan Desai Photography

THE VOYAGE
Charles Baudelaire

For the child, in love with globe and stamps
the universe equals his vast appetite
Ah! How great the world is in the light of lamps!
In the eyes of memory, how small and slight!

One morning we set out, minds filled with fire
travel, following the rhythm of the seas,
hearts swollen with resentment and bitter desire
soothing, in the finite waves, our infinites;

Some happy to leave a land of infamies
some the horrors of childhood,
others whose doom is to drown in a woman's eyes,their astrologies
the tyrannous Circe's dangerous perfumes

The ice that stings them, and the scorching sun
slowly erase the marks of their desire
But the true voyagers are those who leave only to move;
hearts like balloons, as light,
they never swerve from their destinies;
and without knowing why, say,always : "Flight!"

Those whose desires take on cloud-likeness
who dream of vast sensualities
the same way a conscript dreams of the guns,
shifting vagueness, that the human spirit cannot name.

Passion Statement of the Day - Expecting the Best

"Have faith in people. Don't assume the worst."

- Lieutenant Maria LaGuerta, from the TV series, "Dexter"

On Having Stuff and Happiness

1. This is how I wish to get value for money : by investing in experiences, not in things.

2. There are shiny objects and fancy things that we I used to think I can't do without. But the fact is, I can.  Or at the very least, they can wait.

3. The little things can add up. Let me try foregoing the little things and then putting the money saved into the big things, because in time, little things can add up.:)

4. Come to think of it, I have everything I need.

I must say, however, that  there are worthwhile dreams and passions and life pleasures that need funding. So yeah, I'm still in hot pursuit of that promotion and the pay bumps - as is writ in the game plan of every ambitious corporate minion. Because I do like having and doing stuff. I just know I don't need a lot of the shiny and fancy ones to be happy. :)

The Counter (Corporate) Culture Creed

The workplace (not all, but most) can be an energy-sucking vortex of negativity. It seems that someone's always complaining about something - the system, the hours, the pay, the boss, the work, the slow internet connection, the high-priced canteen food. Oh,  the things one must endure to make a living.

Why do we stab the boss behind her back and then smile at her at the corridor? Why do we allow unpleasant vibes to fester in a place where we spend a majority of our waking hours?Why do we come to work dragging our feet and uninspired - as if it were a curse and not a blessing? I believe that people are inherently good, but the workplace somehow manages to bring out the worst in us

One might say, we can't help it if our jobs/boss/computers/canteen food are crappy. Don't we have a right to voice out our grievances?

I say, you CAN help it. No job is going to perfect - there's always going to be something to complain about. But mature individuals will deal with it proactively - because whining never got anyone anywhere. If you must exercise your right to voice out grievances, then do so to someone who can do something about it.

Work is a source of dignity, a sense of accomplishment and pride. When was the last time we thought about our jobs this way? It's not what you do to earn your keep that defines you, it's how you do it.

I am a corporate minion. Have been for five years now. But I'd like to think I am an enlightened corporate minion. (I believe there are others out there too.) I believe that we can be in this world, but not OF this world. In this light, I have made a personal resolution to go against the groupthink grain, to counter the culture that breeds emotional (and physical) toxins. I resolve to be an instrument of goodness in the workplace and (to paraphrase the great Mahatma Gandhi), be the change I want to see in this (corporate) world.

I therefore resolve that

Where there is gossip and griping, let me be silent
Where there is mediocrity, let me strive for excellence and the extra mile
Where there are insults, let me give praises
Where there is discontent, let me find something to be thankful for
Where there is an uncharted work assignment, let me be flexible
Instead of pride, I will have humility
Instead of deceit, integrity
Instead of burnout, balance
Instead of skepticism, faith
Instead of fear, courage

All my words, actions and thoughts in my workplace will be governed by love.

So help me God.